Hints & FAQs for Applicants

Hint 1: Internet Presence

Applicants for various chaplaincy positions need to be aware of and careful with their on-line presences, beginning with an appropriate-sounding email address. Cutesy or too sensuous ones certainly need to be avoided!

Initials-and-last-name@whateverdomain.com addresses are always appropriate.

Social Media. For other social media dos and don'ts, the following article is excellent:
"What the Internet Knows About You" from Newsweek

Professional Behavior. How should one behave when using the internet?

Please watch the clip "An Internet Lesson" from TVKIM.com.

Also, here is a PDF published by the US Marine Corps on the topic of removing yourself from the internet: Public People Search Database Removal Guide

And this article is NOT just for women, despite the title: The Empowering Internet Safety Guide for Women.

Hint 2: Be Honest

Never lie on an application to us or for an institution. If we cannot trust you with being truthful and candid from the very beginning, well.... Enough said!

But, if you want to read and see more on the topic: Huffington Post: How to Spot a Liar

Hint 3: Don't Take Shortcuts

If you are trying to take a shortcut in becoming a chaplain or pastoral counselor, you will always be looking for the "easy," fast way. And usually the easy, fast way, isn't! If you live your life to squeak-by, doing the absolute minimum, you probably are not pastoral caregiver material. God uses the process(es) to mature us and prepare us for solid ministry. If you are all about shortcuts, keep moving and don't stop here. The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches seeks to credential quality; not so much quantity. To find other endorsers, Google "endorsers" or "endorsing bodies" and run with the folks who offer quick online ordination and endorsement. It may not get you into the chaplaincy genre you desire, but it will be a great shortcut!

Hint 4: Do Your Research

When comparing endorsing bodies, take a look at the endorsing body's boards and the quality of their website (Do they copy/plagiarize forms and even entire pages from others [mostly from The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches!] ? Why?) Look at what their leadership and advisors have written and accomplished in the field. Are the Endorsers themselves active in national pastoral care organizations [like the COMISS Network, or the Association of Religious Endorsing Bodies, or the Association of Professional Chaplains, the College of Pastoral Supervision & Psychotherapy, the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, the National Conference on Ministry in the Armed Forces, etc], attending annual meetings and sitting on national boards? Are the Endorsers themselves well-credentialed and well-experienced as chaplains and professional pastoral caregivers? Ask around about them among national organizations and military recruiters. Are they known and respected?

Sadly some "Endorsers" are either denominational appointees sent to that office to do a job they do not understand, and have little preparation for. Or worse, they are out trying to make a quick buck off of unsuspecting prospective chaplains and have little to no real understanding of and experience in professional chaplaincy. There are quite a few "endorsement mills" in the chaplaincy arena. Please make sure you do not get pressured by a recruiter or an institution to produce a fast endorsement that will prove later to be of little value or support — or worse, a source of embarrassment.

Hint 5: Calling and Ordination

A. Are you REALLY called to ministry/chaplaincy? While we realize that the following article is addressed to preachers/pastors, we want you to substitute "chaplain" for "preacher" or "pastor" and read it! Are You Sure God Really Called You Into the Ministry? If, after reading this article, you are sure you are, then read:

B. Yes, Spirit-filled chaplains MUST be Licensed or Ordained! Ordination is a function of the faith community to affirm the calling and gifting of the religious leader to the office/role that God has for him/her. And the role of that faith community is to pray for, encourage, and spiritually support their ordained clergy. As such it behooves the person being ordained to affiliate with a real "body" of believers who will offer that clergyperson real pastoral care and mentoring, real fellowship, real relationship. As even the secular organizations within the USA government (such as the Department of Defense) realizes, only real communities of faith—organized for and constituted of laypersons – have the authority to ordain (or defrock).

Ministers' fellowships, chaplains' gatherings and organizations, and ordination "companies" (just Google "fast clergy ordination" or "become ordained today"!) do not meet the requirements that the government sets for its military chaplains [please see DOD Instruction Number 1304.28, page 12, paragraph 4.2.b. (1)]. Besides, what person desiring to be an authentic, qualified chaplain would want such a bogus, non-relationship-based ordination? Anecdotally, one endorser has recently reported that one of their denomination's clergy utilized an internet-based "ordaining company" to get his dog ordained and was able to do so – for a fee – immediately. This ordination company has very few, if any, real congregations or lay constituency, and yet it claims on its website that it is able to secure ecclesiastical endorsement for its clergy desiring to be military chaplains. A good rule of thumb: If it seems too easy and too quick to be valid or true, it probably is! Let the prospective clergy beware!

In stark contrast to such ordination/endorsement companies, The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches (CSC), is a bona fide coalition of independent congregations and networks/fellowships of like-minded congregations. And the CSC is not a "closed coalition." We are always open to more congregations and networks of churches affiliating with us, giving us their permission to represent their group's clergy for chaplaincy purposes only – and at no charge. [We are strictly a faith ministry totally supported by the voluntary donations of our chaplains and partner congregations and groups and friends] Hence, if you are already ordained by your local congregation or network of churches, PLEASE remain in that fellowship where you are loved and being cared for. You need not be re-ordained nor have your ordination transferred. Rather, simply ask that body where you are ordained to authorize The CSC to represent them and you. Please see http://spirit-filled.org/joining.html, and invite them to "sign-up" with us.

If you are not yet ordained, and it is not likely that you will be ordained by your home congregation, please feel free to give us a call to discuss it. There is an excellent chance that we can introduce you to a congregation in your locale — or to a national network — with whom we already have relationship. We now represent hundreds of Spirit-filled congregations serving and filled with laypeople (not just a mail-order pseudo-church existing on paper-only!) with whom you can have a real, mutual, Christ-based pastoral, caring relationship. Please do not succumb to an ordination/endorsement mill and cheat yourself out of a bona-fide faith community who will be there for you and your family!

C. The following 9.5 minute clip is really worth the close watch and careful listen. Jo Saxton looks at the thin line between calling and narcissism offering Christians a way of viewing calling through the eyes of God. The question she asks is: “Is your calling a real calling by God or is it really just your own narcissism?” This is a very powerful clip. There are thousands upon thousands of clergy (and would-be clergy) who think they need to be in religious leadership, that God has called them to great prominence and positions of authority when in fact that “sense of call” is nothing more than their own narcissism. Chaplains are not exempt from such delusions. And in The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches Executive Director’s opinion (informed by over a quarter of a century of endorsing experience) military chaplains (and prospects) are particularly prone to this. Perhaps this is because they are drawn to the rank and sharp uniform that seemingly automatically communicates “instant authority” to society. This is one of the reasons that it is essential, in the spiritual formation of clergy, that seminarians have a caring group of peers and mentors, lay and clergy, who can help them to discern and affirm their sense of call and proper gifting for that call. Such a group can also process the seminarians’ motivations for wanting to become clergy, and especially so for chaplains (who are not serving a particular faith group, but rather the very diverse and pluralistic society around them). For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear:

D. Chaplaincy is a special and specific calling. It is NOT a back-up plan for failed ministry as a pastor or missionary. Please read this: This is not your backup plan – An open letter from a chaplain

Hint 6: Resumes

Here is how to write a good resume: The ABC's of resume writing (www.ajc.com) and Top Secrets Of Expert Resumes (jobs.aol.com)

And now, how to make a Ministry Resume worth reading:

First, do not lie; do not embellish; and do not write "in faith" [that is, "calling things that are not, as though they are"]. For example, please do not state that you “helped direct the Christian Education Department of First Charismatic Church for 5 years,” when, really, you were the pre-school Sunday School teacher.

Write clearly, and precisely, and not in generalities. Rather than state "Associate Pastor of First Maranatha Church" and leave it at that, DESCRIBE your responsibilities and achievements AND about how many hours per week you averaged in that position, if you were not full-time [e.g., "oversaw the community outreach and discipleship for the congregation and during the five years of part-time ministry (20 hours per week) I served on the leadership team, the church grew from 100 weekly worshipers to over 400"]. Be thorough — this is not a time to be modest and humble! Also, if you are/were not a professional [that is a “paid” employee of the church], please be clear about that. There is no shame in being a volunteer. State that you were/are a volunteer, if that was/is the case.

Do not attempt to obfuscate your resume by double counting the same time-frame in different ministries. In other words, you have been on staff at First Church full-time (defined as 36 or more hours per week) for the past two years and at the same you do some volunteer correctional ministry several evenings a week and have done so for 3 years. Especially military applicants: Please do not try to confuse the reader by stating that you have been in correctional ministry for 3 years and then add the two ministry timeframes together to come up with 5 years of professional ministry experiences. In 2016, we had just such an applicant construct such a confusing resume and was caught by his senior chaplain interviewer. The interviewer called us and asked if we had figured-out how he had manipulated his resume. We had noted some ambiguity on his document , but had not picked-up on that. Needless to say, his interviewer recommended he be non-select for his attempts to deceive -- and the military agreed.

If there are gaps in your ministry tenure, identify them and explain why they are there. Be positive and honest!

Run your resume by a trusted friend or two or five, and ask for their sincere opinion.

Every time you apply to a new organization you may want to review your resume and have it tweaked for nuances. See: “Why You Have To Edit Your Resume Every Time You Apply”

Hint 7: Soft Skills

First, learn what they are: Soft Skills Definition: What are Soft Skills?

Next, honestly assess your own soft skills.

If you are "low" or unsure about some of them, especially emotional intelligence, seek some professional assistance. It is truly hard — with today's society with a STRONG emphasis on sincere commitment to diversity and pluralism — to be a successful chaplain, if you have low emotional intelligence.

Moreover, if you lack empathy, as a chaplain you are virtually doomed to failure, in my professional opinion and over twenty years experience as an endorser. How can you know whether or not you have empathy? Please spend five minutes and take a look at THIS VIDEO. If you do not feel a tugging at your heart for the folks in the video, you lack empathy.

Regarding emotional intelligence, it is important that you are both self-aware and others-aware. Are you emotionally transparent and even intimate with the world? Here is a 15-minute TEDx Talk by a theologically-educated life coach that you might find helpful: How We've Been Misled by 'Emotional Intelligence'

The Navy is even teaching emotional intelligence to its new officers now: Research Psychologist Proposes EI Training for New Officers. And the Wall Street Journal did a great piece on the topic a couple years back: Employers Find ‘Soft Skills’ Like Critical Thinking in Short Supply.

And here is a recent healthcare article on the importance of soft skills for chaplains: Sharpening Soft Skills: Spiritual Care Simulations, Reflections Emphasize Patient Healing, Nurse Resilience.

Hint 8: Examine Yourself Through Your Prospective Endorser's and Employer's Eyes and Ears

The two-word key here is "Be Professional!" The following illustrations and exhortations are from real life encounters with prospective chaplains.

Phones. It is okay to list a cell phone as a point of contact. However: Make sure that your voicemail is set-up (it is a big put-off if you have been too lazy to greet your callers in your own voice with a cheerful, upbeat message vs. the "You have reached 555-555-5555. Please leave a message." Also, make sure your personal greeting sounds warm, energetic, and appropriate ("Yo, whattup, homey?" is not appropriate!) Your greeting — live or recorded — needs to be clear and enunciated. If you answer with a "hello," please make sure it rhymes with "jello" and is not "huh-low" or "hol-low." You may think these points are minor, but, from the employer's perspective, if you are lazy and unprofessional before hiring (when in the application phase), why should things change if you do get the position? Also, check and clear-out your voicemail box frequently. It is very discouraging for a prospective employer to reach a voicemail box where s/he cannot leave a message because the box is full.

Email. Check your email account and respond to your email frequently! If you are checking your email from a prospective employer only once every week or two — well, that tells your employer that you are NOT the one to hire! Also, find out your prospective endorser or employer's preferred mode of communication and use it. Remember you need them more than they need you. Also, if you are not internet savvy and competent, the chances of finding and keeping a chaplaincy ministry are virtually non-existent in today's world of IT communication and marketing. If you need a free email account, please visit http://spirit-filled.org/contact.html.

Grammar. While no one speaks or writes perfect English 100% of the time, you definitely need to sound like you have basic English competency and that do not have trouble communicating with educated people. All chaplains and chaplain candidates have at least an undergraduate degree, so sound like it. Make sure of your subject and verb agreement. Use proper tense, and basic spelling and correct capitalizations. To do less makes one look unprofessional. The employer looking for their next chaplain to hire will keep looking. Also, speaking multiple languages is always a big plus!

Also, if you know that your English is not very strong, PLEASE take remedial classes to improve. Also, the better you can write, the better you can think critically. PLEASE watch The Best Way To Learn Critical Thinking . Seriously, when we receive essays with poor English grammar and usually even poorer reasoning and logic, we know that your chances of being successful as a chaplain (to be hired and to KEEP a position) are greatly diminished. Don’t cheat yourself! Learn to speak and write proper English.

Before the Interview. Please, please read this as you prepare for that interview: 13 Mistakes That Could Ruin Your Job Interview, According To Hiring Managers

The Interview. When you do get invited to interview, you will want to be a LITTLE bit early. Arrive too early and you will seem too eager and will be an awkward inconvenience. Be polite and courteous when speaking with the receptionist. S/he often yields great power. But do not try to curry their favor nor pump them for inside information. They are pretty smart folks and can see thru this as they have probably dealt with many others before you. Do read 10 Things Receptionists Won't Tell You ahead of the interview or even prior to your initial personal contact with the company for some great pointers.

After the Interview. Do yourself a BIG FAVOR and read and heed this now! The First Thing You Should Do After You Walk Out Of That Job Interview. Thank you notes are never out of style and they show that you have style!

For the interview, you will want to dress for success: appropriate, well-fitting, cleaned and pressed business attire, along with shined shoes, and a fresh haircut/style. Do pay attention your grooming and hygene. Do some research on the company or institution you are interested in serving. Find out ahead of time what issues the company may be facing and be prepared to let them know how you will be a unique teamplayer with what you have to offer.

Hint 9: "Why We Need More 'Chaplains' and Fewer Leaders"

"Why We Need More 'Chaplains' and Fewer Leaders" from Christianity Today.

Hint 10: "The Chumbawamba Principle"

Read "The Chumbawamba Principle" from NPR.

Hint 10 A: Don't Take Shortcuts — Part II

If you skipped Hint 10, you really need to go back and read it. And I want you to ask yourself, why am I skipping free advice and wisdom? This is important. This is life, your ministry, and career. Don't take shortcuts. Don't cheat yourself!

Hint 11: Support of the CSC. Updated 1 April 2019

We are virtually a unique endorsing body. We are approaching 325 chaplains endorsed and serving (about half Federal – military, Federal Bureau of Prisons, and Veterans Administration). Since our inception twenty years ago, we have NEVER had fees or dues. We always have sought to be a bona-fide faith-based, Spirit-led endorsing body. We have sincerely asked our endorsees to make our support a matter of prayer, obedience, and priority – a part of their stewardship to the Lord. [Some endorsing bodies demand their chaplains pay AT LEAST half of the tithe (5%) of their pay as a chaplain.] Recently, it has come to our attention that some chaplains have been telling others that we are “free,” or “cheap/inexpensive,” or that we do not take support seriously. Those comments GRIEVE us deeply. And nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, we tell all of our applicants and we sincerely EXPECT that all of our applicants pray about sending regular support to keep us in the business of responsible endorsement. It is all a part of a genuine long-term endorsing relationship. On our application we have always stated (and all must sign):

I understand that CSC is dependent on the financial support of chaplains, churches, and friends. I agree to regularly help with the expenses of this ministry. (Generally, it is expected that professional chaplains will pray about and contribute a significant percentage of the tithe that they give from their chaplaincy income — to support this ministry and, thus, safeguard the future of their ability to be responsibly endorsed.)

Sadly, some of our chaplains have felt that this was a joke or these were just worthless words on a page, and they signed it and never contributed. Apparently, they never intended to contribute in any meaningful way. They lied when they signed that pledge. As we have spent time contacting some of these chaplains, they often simply responded very casually, even frivolously. We have been notifying these folks that they need to find another endorsing organization as we can no longer afford to support them. In addition to this resource-laden website, we are pleased provide numerous professional services including a quarterly professional journal (see https://spirit-filled.org/services.html). All of these services are very expensive to maintain. We have to pay a per chaplain fee to many organizations, and we just cannot any longer afford to pay for the privilege of serving those non-supporting chaplains in our group. If you do not plan to support the CSC, PLEASE DO NOT APPLY. If you do apply, and you renege on your commitment to a shared ministry, eventually you will be purged from our rolls for breach of a good faith commitment – and that will be reflected on our withdrawal of endorsement. And as you seek a new endorser, beware. There are some very questionable endorsing bodies out there and they do charge exorbitantly for their services. There are also some very good, solid endorsing bodies. But, once they learn about the prior breach of relationship and trust, these chaplains are finding that the other good endorsing agencies are reluctant to accept them into their folds. If you have any questions or concerns about our expectations, please call us and we will be glad to discuss this with you. We will be genuine and transparent with you as we expect you to be genuine and transparent with us.

Hint 12: Clinical Pastoral Education

First, if you want to know more about it, please visit http://spirit-filled.org/links1.html.

If you feel you have a good understanding of CPE, great! It is an excellent growing process for any clergy, and especially those seeking to be professional chaplains – of any genre!

Now, and this is important, if you are seeking to become a board certified chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains, please know that you MUST take at least 4 units of CPE in ADDITION to however many units of CPE that you have taken at your seminary as a requirement to earn your graduate degree. No double-dipping! No exceptions, no shortcuts! For more information on this, please download and carefully read Open Letter to ACPE Centers and ACPE Supervisors.

Hint 13: Digital Security

As chaplains and pastoral counselors, BE VERY CAREFUL with the confidential and privileged communication you receive. Please know that your very computer and cell phone can be broken into fairly readily. Password-protect everything! Even password-protected devices such as cell phones and computers can be broken into — especially when others have physical access to these devises.

The following is an article on how to re-gain control of your own computer, cell phone, etc when you have forgotten passwords. EXTREME CAUTION: Unsavory types — law-breakers — use the same information to break into your computer, cell phone, etc.

As professional keepers of secrets, do your very best to secure your counselees information!

Hint 13a: A Click Away from Malware

This is a must-read article! A Click Away from Malware from Programming 4 Us.

Hint 13b: Recovering a Hacked Account

Since this sort of hacking and hijacking happens so frequently (often from trojans, spies, and such that automatically install themselves from malicious sites that appear as links in innocent-looking spam emails), the following article might be helpful: "Recovering a hacked account" from The Kim Komando Show.

Another resource for what to do when you've been hacked can be found at http://www.kroll.com

Hint 13c: Be CAREFUL of Google Docs

Please read this article from The Atlantic: "Did Someone Just Share a Random Google Doc With You? Don’t click."

In fact, we ask that if you have documents that you wish to send to us that you merely attach them to an email directly from you.

Hint 13d: DO NOT USE FaceBook Messenger or Calling for official communications.

In addition to the numerous hacks into that media and overt data-selling by FaceBook, they MONITOR both Messnger communications and phone calls using their phone application. You do not want to be party to a security violation or confidentially breech. Please read these two article and heed! Facebook's Privacy Problem Isn't Just Likes: It's Phone Calls and Texts and No, Facebook, It's Not OK to Track Users' Calls and Texts for Years Because They Let You Share Contacts

Hint 14: The "How to Get a Job Manual"

Here is a good basic "How To" manual. Click here

Hint 15: Calling Our Office

Hint 15a: Do N-O-T Use Skype for Calling Our Office!

We regularly get calls from telemarketers or wrong numbers from Skype daily. And in the past when a chaplain or prospect does call and we answer, they can barely be understood the connection is so bad. Sometimes, they cannot be understood. PLEASE use your cell phone or if you have none, please find a hard-line phone somewhere and us on the toll-free number we are pleased to provide. We have now set our phones to automatically REJECT Skype calls. If you need to call us and cannot afford the minutes on your cell phone, please use our toll-free number (the same number we have had for two decades) 877-CSC-CHAP. Also, if you do not have a cell phone, that number is also good on any hard-wired line in North America.

Hint 15b: If You Get Our Voicemail…

We are likely on the other line or we are not available. Always leave a message. Always. Otherwise, we will think that you may have mistakenly dialed us or that you have changed your mind about the call — and we will likely not return it.

Hint 16: Seminaries

Hint 16a: Liberty University 72-hour M.Div. Chaplaincy Program

17 May 2020 Update: While Liberty’s MDiv degree is fully accredited, one needs to be aware of multiple controversies and justice issues with the school. Please read Being black at Liberty University

**As of 12 October 2014 and until further notice, new applications from candidates who hold or are currently pursuing the Liberty University 72-hour M.Div. Chaplaincy Program will not be processed by this endorsing agency.**

We at The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches are passionate about those to whom our chaplains will minister. Their institutions deserve the highest quality of pastoral care. With limited resources and staff, I personally spend an enormous amount of time, energy, and resources to vet each prospective candidate for endorsement. I spend a good deal of time, also, visiting our chaplains at their service schools and professional conferences. And I constantly act as liaison with the Chaplain Corps and other institutions to which we endorse. There are no short-cuts for providing quality professional endorsement. There are also no short-cuts for preparations for chaplaincy by candidates. Here at The Coalition, each applicant is personally screened and every aspect of their qualifications, experience and talents collated for their board package. We have found that the 72-hour Liberty University degree consistently falls short in competitiveness for board selection. We often wonder if it demonstrates a short-cut attitude toward preparations for what can be rigorous, challenging and demanding duty. For this reason, we currently must make the difficult decision to no longer consider these degrees.

If you already hold such a degree but have enhanced it with substantial additional graduate course work and/or nationally-accredited specialty ministry training such as clinical pastoral education, Prepare-Enrich certification or Critical Incident Stress Management Certification, PTSD Treatment, etc., feel free to contact us to discuss your individual preparation for chaplaincy and possible application for endorsement. Applicants with these additional credentials may be considered on a case-by-case basis. All others simply are not competitive for military chaplaincy positions, in our experience.

By the way, some military chaplaincy applicants report being very encouraged by their conversations with military recruiters. Unfortunately, this is highly misleading and such "encouragement" is misplaced. Legally, if one technically "qualifies" within the general parameters of the chaplaincy program requirements, one MUST be allowed to apply for consideration for commissioning within the Chaplain Corps. Even if the applicant is not competitive at all and the odds are 1 out of 1,000 for selection, that applicant still has the "right" to apply. So please do not mistake a recruiter's simple willingness to process your application as "a good sign!" They are simply following regulations.

Incidentally a few folks have asked why we have taken such a stand regarding Liberty University’s seminary. Interestingly, in the last week of October 2014 we received an unsolicited comment from one of our endorsees who is an alum of that seminary:

“...Regarding Liberty. I started out taking classes at Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) in Waxahachie, Texas. Most of my fellow chaplain candidates were completing their seminary degrees at Liberty. The tuition was half of SAGU and classes were offered more frequently. So I transferred to Liberty. I took classes at Liberty for about two years. However, I found the academic depth and standards to be significantly inferior to SAGU and other master level degree programs. I had also taken graduate business coursework at Texas A&M before taking classes at Liberty. I had 3-5 page papers at Liberty versus 15-25 page papers at SAGU. I typically had two textbooks per class at Liberty versus four to six at SAGU. Also, Liberty will let someone graduate with a Master of Divinity degree with a 2.0 grade-point-average. I don't know of any other University of Seminary that grants graduate degrees without a 3.0 grade-point-average or above.”

Frankly we thought that he might be exaggerating things a bit about Liberty University graduating folks with a minimal GPA of 2.0 -- and we then spoke with one of our active duty chaplains who is an alum of their 93-hour program. Our chaplain directed us to http://www.liberty.edu/online/?PID=27632.

We see this as very sad and we hope that the military and prospective quality chaplains take note.

11 December 2014 Update: We continue to get contacts from our endorsees with Liberty degrees who are reporting that they did not fare well on recent accession boards. We also had one of our chaplains contact us to report that there was a mean-spirited comment or two posted on the blog of The Forum on the Military Chaplaincy about our 12 October 2014 position on Liberty's 72-hour M.Div. degrees. As a result of those comments and to clarify some possible misperceptions, we have requested that a paper on “Why We Have Taken the Position We Have” be posted on that blog, and it was, at http://forumonthemilitarychaplaincy.org. Interestingly, I have already heard back from fellow endorsers commending The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches on our positions and that article.

7 March 2019 Update: We are pleased to report that Liberty has now enhanced their program to a 93-hour MDiv in chaplaincy. Our main concerns now are that so many folks now have their degrees (both the 72-hour and 93-hour MDiv) that it is being reported that between 20-25% of military chaplains now hold such a degree, the vast majority online. While this does qualify one for military chaplaincy, in our opinion, it is not the best preparation for chaplaincy, nor is a government chaplaincy truly well-balanced and healthy when one fifth to one fourth of all chaplains have the EXACT same academic experience. There are approximately 200 seminaries in North America. When one seminary (0.5%) has produced that percentage of chaplains, there has got to be a limitation of perspectives within the chaplaincy.

Hint 16b: Evangelical Seminary’s Military Chaplaincy MDiv Program; Sioux Falls Seminary Kairos Project for MDiv

Chaplain (Colonel) Bruce Farrell, US Army (Retired) is the head Evangelical Seminary MDiv in Chaplaincy. The school has joined forces with Sioux Falls Seminary to creative an innovative Kairos Project (see Kairos Outcomes by Degree Program). The MDiv is designed to be affordable approximately $300/month while in seminary, and is offered both in-residence and online. The school also offers a Scholarship Program for Military Seminarians. As I understand that scholarship is tuition, the chaplain candidate pays for miscellaneous other fees and books. Quite the bargain, in my opinion! Please see 4C Scholarship for Military Chaplain Candidates. Dr. Farrell may be reached at bruce.farrell@evangelical.edu. Feel free to tell him that you were referred to the program by Dave Plummer. Similarly, Sioux Falls Seminary has a fairly similar program for roughly the same costs. Here is their Kairos Project information: Sioux Falls Seminary Kairos Project.

Hint 17: REGARDING: Military Chaplaincy

The military chaplaincy is back to a build-up mode with job openings. And they are more accepting of the “streamlined” 72-hour online MDiv degrees [However, in my opinion, the more robust a degree, the better! Let’s face it, would you rather visit a professional who had a 72-hour degree or a 90+ hour professional degree?]. As such, we HIGHLY recommend that you make yourself as competitive as possible. You might be able to enhance your competitive edge by keeping your GPA as high as possible (see the military’s current policies, listed below), taking as many classes in counseling as possible (please see Hint #22), picking up extra degrees (in addition to the MDiv), getting specialty certifications in chaplaincy-related services, learning and being proficient in other languages, taking clinical pastoral education (please see Hint #12), and, of course, being especially physically fit. You will be well-served to make yourself as competitive as possible. This will help for both accessions AND promotions!

Your Credit Record and Debt. Make sure you’re in reasonable control of your debts and have a good credit record. The military checks! See: Background Check Change Could Put Troops' Clearances at Risk. And once you are accessioned, keep charge of your records!

The Army is now (November 2019) paying incentives for recruiting chaplains and chaplain candidates. For more information on this, click [HERE]. For information about the Army's accession policies, please follow the links to read the FY 2015 Policy. How is "Professional Work Experienced defined?" As of November 2017, please click here. For the April 2017 guidance, please click here. For the New (July 2018) Policy on Waivers for Appointment/Accessions and Retention (Including Chaplains), please click here. Additionally, I am attaching a blank “Chronological Listing of Ministry Experience” here. The Army will require this form of all active duty chaplain prospects. Please complete this one and return it to us to show us what you intend to list and the wording you intend to use. After the fact, we have found that some applicants with the Army have actually hurt their chances by listing insignificant things in ministry (leading children’s church, teaching VBS, going on short-term “missionary” tourism, etc.) and/or wrote things that were misunderstood by the Army. We are here to help you and to help you represent yourself and your giftings in the best possible manner. Please help us help you!

For Information about the Navy's accession policies, please click [HERE].

Hint 17a: ACTIVE DUTY CHAPLAINCY

We are not trying to be offensive or patronizing; we take your request AND PREPARTIONS very seriously. If you are seeking active duty chaplaincy, we expect you to have a good deal of experience in HIGH QUALITY ministry -- “meat and potatoes” ministry. Namely, we expect you to be regularly preaching at your church (at least a service every several weeks vs. 3 or 4 times a year). We expect that are also leading evening Bible studies or other services. We expect that you are regularly doing all sorts of pastoral counseling: Marriage, pre-marital, suicidal ideation. financial stress, sexual adjustments, life difficulties/coaching, etc. YOU are the one called upon to do baptisms, funerals, lead congregational meetings, communion services, leading worship, etc. ON THE OTHER HAND, if your background consists of leading children’s church, teaching at VBS, teaching a Sunday School class, chalk talks, managing the church food bank, leading choir practice, etc., please do not ask us to endorse you to active duty -- as you will be summarily rejected. You MUST DO PROFESSIONAL ministry for an active duty endorsement. While these other activities are fine to do, most laypersons can be empowered to do them -- and they do them well. We are looking for professional ministry experience, at least two years or 3,200 hours worth. If you do not have them, obtain them before asking us to endorse you to active duty. If your church will not allow you or empower you to do such, it is either time to change churches or be content to serve in the Reserves or Guard. Also, if a good portion of your professional ministry experience comes directly from your ministry in the Reserves or Guard, it is generally not the kind of qualifying ministry that the military (and we) expect of a properly prepared active duty chaplain. We know that this sounds harsh, but it is reality! Active duty is demanding and to give the military an ill-prepared ministry professional is not fair to the military and sets-up the chaplain for failure.

Hint 18: Anderson University 5-year Bachelor’s Degree and [automatic] 75-hour M.Div. Chaplaincy Program

**As of 23 January 2015 and until further notice, applications from candidates who hold or are currently pursuing the Anderson University 75-hour M.Div. Chaplaincy Program will not be processed by this endorsing agency.**

Again, here is a get-thru-an-aggressive-8-year-program in 5 years approach. See auministry.com. They count 30 semester hours of their Bachelor’s degree toward fulfilling their very thin 75-hour MDiv’s requirements. And so with 45 hours more that one can apparently earn in a year, you have an MDiv. NOT a good idea in this highly competitive chaplaincy era. And we will not accept it as meeting our expectations for a proper education for chaplaincy – military or civilian.

Hint 19: Learn and Practice Professional Etiquette

21 business etiquette rules every professional should know

Proper Speech

Hint 20: Are you prepared for a test? If not, please get prepared.

Charles Schwab CEO Reveals How He Tests Job Candidates

Hint 21: Finding and Choosing a Seminary

While The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches does not require you to attend a specific seminary or choose from a particular pool of seminaries, we do expect you to attend one that holds national recognition with the Association of Theological Schools (or any other CHEA-approved accrediting organizations). We also encourage you to go with a more robust academic program (85 plus semester hours) over a skinny program (averaging 72 hours) and attend a brick-and-mortar campus versus studying on-line. We have found that folks with the longer degrees and who have experienced their spiritual development within a face-to-face community of fellow sojourners tend to be “professionally socialized” and they tend to do significantly better in both being selected for chaplaincy positions and successfully holding those positions — as well as grow more adeptly into their roles and callings.

A good article that might be helpful in discerning a seminary that might be a good fit for you is "The Fit Finder: How to Choose the Seminary that is Right for You." Be sure to click on the links within that article for additional information.

Hint 21a: Don’t let this happen to you!

These high school journalists investigated a new principal’s credentials.
Days later, she resigned.

Florida candidate tried to prove she’s a college graduate.
The school says her diploma is fake.

We check credentials — and institutions and HR departments do too!

Pick a school wisely and check their accreditation standing with CHEA. If you are uncertain or want a second opinion, please call or email us. Far better safe than sorry!

Hint 22: Majoring on the Majors! Or…
“A Blinding Flash of the Obvious” for Chaplains and Pastoral Caregivers

While The Coalition of Spirit-filled Churches does not require you to attend a specific seminary, nor choose from a particular pool of seminaries, nor even major in any kind of specialization with your qualifying theological degree (typically an MDiv) , we do want you to be prepared for a successful chaplaincy career. Although, I [Dave Plummer] have been in chaplain endorsing since 1992, it did not occur to me until a conversation just today (August 2018) that there are some chaplains who think that the topics of evangelism and church growth or Biblical languages are perfectly good specializations to focus upon for a properly prepared chaplain. While these topics ARE perfectly good and needful subjects for various clergy in the Lord’s service, institutions which are doing the hiring [and firing] are not looking for great evangelists or Biblical language linguists/interpreters. They are looking for chaplains who will care for the institution’s people – all the people. They are looking for real pastoral caregivers.

As such, a wise seminarian heading to chaplaincy will prepare themselves with as many pastoral counseling courses as they can take. They will look for opportunities to pick-up specialty education and training like critical incident stress management, PTSD care, various specialties of ethics, suicide awareness and prevention, bereavement, marriage and family counseling, pre-marital and pre-romantic relationship counseling, moral fatigue, credit and financial basics, clinical pastoral education, etc. Such are the tools and education of military and civilian chaplains.

If you are studying at a seminary known for evangelism and world mission, please do not allow an overzealous faculty mentor nudge you into their favorite courses or perhaps the school’s favorite courses. This is about YOUR preparation for YOUR calling. If you are in doubt, please give us a call and let’s talk about it.

Hint 23: Applying and Following-Up on Applications.

I have received calls of complaints from military recruiters that have told me that they have asked for documents or statements from applicants only to receive them weeks or months later — or not at all — and the applicants still demand that their packets move thru quickly. It does not work that way.

Somewhat similarly, we sometimes receive partial applications or applications needing additional documents or actions, and then we quickly reply that we need documents a, b, c, d, e, and f. We then will often get two or three of those needed documents. But then, nothing. We wait. Nothing. Then weeks, sometimes even months, later suddenly we get an emergent communication from our applicant that their recruiters must have that endorsement in the next 12 hours or else wait months for the next board. Thinking that we have slipped-up and failed to render prompt attention to their files, we then chase down our email threads only to discover that they have not sent to us a missing document or two. We then go back to them, typically forwarding that email thread and we get an “Oh!” response. And then we get a typical follow-up with “Can’t you just endorse now, and we will get those other documents to you later?” The answer is no. We really do need that which we ask for and sometimes, just sometimes, we feel that the applicant has gotten themselves in a bind for failure to produce the needed documents in a timely manner. Professional chaplains keep attention to such details and listen carefully to requests and follow-through.

Hint 24: Student Debt

PLEASE look out and avoid as much as possible, STUDENT DEBT.

Please take a look at the box titled Before you take out a government loan for education, PLEASE watch on our Resources for Theological Education page. This section contains a clip from Adam Ruins Everything, as well as another video and link to related article. Please read the article underneath it, too.

Hint 25: Veterans Affairs Chaplaincy

Up until 8 October 2019, CPE students in VA-based programs had an advantage in that after completing a 4-unit residency they did need not to compete with other VA employee chaplain applicants, particularly those with veteran-status “bonus points,” if a VA hospital wanted to hire them directly. With the signing of this memorandum, that has changed. As of 13 October, the practice of CPE Graduates being hired non-competitively without having the rating/ranking competitive with Veteran applicants has been discontinued. The only way for these graduates to be hired after 13 October is through the competitive rating/ranking process where 10-Point Veterans get preference, and then 5-Point Veterans.

This constitutes a major change for chaplains participating in the various CPE programs. The change comes about due to limitations of the funding used for these positions.

More hints are coming as they are thought about....